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Talib Kweli & Mick Boogie: Magazine Magnates :: Attack of the MCEO and DJournalist

By Mick Boogie / Brandon Perkins   Photography by URB

03/05/08 :: URB web

So not only are Mick Boogie and Talib Kweli putting out this new mixtape, MCEO, on their own on Monday (check mickboogie.com, myspace.com/talibkweli and illroots.com), but they decided to do everything else, too. Talib is the MC and the CEO (hence "MCEO") and Mick is the DJournalist. Mick's first work is below. He asked the tough questions and sometimes, he even answered them. Still, URB.com is the OG source, so remember where you heard aobut this new project first, as well as the promise of a reunion we've all been waiting for (but not the big reunion we've all been waiting for).

What is the MCEO project?
Mick: It’s Kweli working as not only an artist and emcee, but as the CEO of Blacksmith as well. This project is about not just the music business, but the business of music.
Kweli: I had to master the language of business in the same way I have mastered lyricism in order to keep bringing it the way I want it brought.  Being MCEO is just a continuation of who I am as an MC.

So who is all on this project?
Mick: Obviously, Talib. Jean Grae. Strong Arm Steady. Kweli and a vocalist most people will remember, Res, have a new group called Idle Warship. And some guests are on the project as well…Joell Ortiz, Planet Asia and a new group I’m working with called Fly Union.
Kweli:  I know that held up against this other stuff in the market, my crew will shine bright…the entire Blacksmith movement!
 
So Blacksmith is developing quite well?
Kweli: These guys aren’t my artists in the typical sense.  We look at them as partners. We are all learning, growing and developing together, and this mixtape will be proof of that.

How important are mixtapes to hip-hop culture?
Mick: They are the foundation.  Every artist wants to be heard, and MTV and radio spins aren’t cutting it anymore. Digital mixtapes, blogs, and new media is the way artists are developing fans and a musical catalog. And if, and only if, they play their cards right, the end result will be successful album sales.
Kweil: They are especially important to me because they allow me to flex a muscle I don't normally use on the albums. Mixtapes are the proving ground of our culture.

Continue for three streaming (and steaming) cuts from MCEO and more Q&A from the DJournalist